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State poll: 3 out of 5 support viaduct tunnel

About 62 percent of Seattle area residents support a tunnel replacement for the Alaskan Way Viaduct after being informed of the project’s key advantages, including that the tunnel is the only option that would keep the viaduct open to traffic during construction, according to a survey commissioned by the state’s Transportation Department.

“The survey would suggest there is a majority of people who will support the tunnel once they understand the benefits of the project,” said Ron Paananen, project administrator.

On Wednesday, WSDOT released results from a $60,000 random telephone survey of 1,000 registered voters in Seattle, Shoreline, Tuwkila and Burien conducted Sept. 20-30. The survey, conducted by EMC Research, was to gauge public knowledge of the controversial, $4.2 billion project in advance of the state’s supplemental environmental impact statement, which will be released Oct. 29.

During the survey, respondents first were asked if they thought the tunnel project was a good idea. Forty-two percent said “yes,” while 31 percent thought it was a bad idea.

Then, they were asked a range of questions, such as whether they knew it was the only option under which traffic could stay open during construction; that state law says Seattle taxpayers must pay for any cost-overruns on the $1.9 billion project, although the state Attorney General and City Attorney say the legislation is unenforceable; that the tunnel could withstand a 2,500-year earthquake; and that the waterfront would be quieter and cleaner.

After that, support for the tunnel shot up to 62 percent while opposition remained at 31 percent.

“There’s clearly a segment of the population that for whatever reason doesn’t like the tunnel,” Paananen said.

Fifty-five percent were unaware the viaduct would remain open during tunnel construction. According to the survey, 85 percent said that factor was important or somewhat important to them.

Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn opposes the tunnel option and bases most of his argument against the cost-overrun provision, which he says will put the city at risk. McGinn would prefer not replacing the viaduct and compensating with improvements to I-5, a new surface boulevard and expanded transit service.

Despite 77 percent who said they were at least somewhat familiar with the project, many were did not know key details. For example, 43 percent didn’t know the current plan for a deep-bore tunnel is not the same as the cut-and-cover tunnel that voters rejected with an advisory vote in 2007.

Seventy-eight percent think traffic congestion would worsen if the viaduct were removed and not replaced.

Despite the fact that Seattle is big on transit and carbon neutrality, 89 percent of respondents said they want vehicle capacity increased or maintained through the state Route 99 corridor in downtown. Forty-seven percent were in favor of increasing traffic capacity. The viaduct carries 110,000 vehicles per day.

Paananen said the question was broad and that a variety of arguments could be made. Still, the results were hard to ignore.

“I’m sure if you asked if they’d like more transit service, they probably would have said yes,” he said. “I think what it really says is that they want more transportation.”

(Traffic modeling shows about one-third of traffic would divert to surface streets with the highway tunnel, although combined with a new surface Alaskan Way boulevard, it more than makes up for loss of the viaduct.)

As part of the survey, respondents were asked which of two following statements more closely fits their beliefs.

STATEMENT A: Critics of the bored tunnel say it is flawed because it perpetuates our reliance on cars, creates more pollution, and forces Seattle citizens to be responsible for cost overruns.

STATEMENT B1: Supporters of the tunnel say cars aren’t going away anytime soon. While we definitely need to decrease our reliance on cars and increase transit, we already have too much congestion, and not replacing the viaduct’s capacity will create gridlock.

Paananen acknowledged that while the survey touched on tolls and cost-overruns, it did not ask any questions about construction risks. “I think we had trouble keeping the survey to reasonable length. You could do a whole survey on how to handle risk and contingency and we’ve been through that ad nauseum.”

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